Hardly a week after Shoshong MP retraced his steps and rejoined the ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP), Mogoditshane MP Patrick Masimolole has also rejoined the BDP.
Masimolole, who earlier this week denied reports of a lingering defection back to the BDP, will throw away his BMD orange colours for BDP’s red, black and white as he makes a return back into his former party.
This has been confirmed to the Sunday Standard by the party’s treasurer Satar Dada.
“He has rejoined the party; he joined it today,” Dada said on Friday.
Dada said that the issue was discussed at the party’s central committee after it received a letter from Masimolole.
The Mogoditshane legislator is understood to have written to the BDP seeking to be admitted back into the party. At the time of going to press, Masimolole’s phone rang unanswered.
However, in a separate interview, the BDP’s chairman of Culture and Publicity committee Shaw Kgathi expressed jubilation when speaking about Masimolole’s return to the BDP.
Kgathi said that many more MPs who had left the party for its splinter party BMD were coming back.
“We are now facing the opposition head on,” added Kgathi. “We are in a recruitment spring and we are now targeting Ntuane because he is the softer target,” announced Kgathi.
He denied reports that Masimolole had been lured with a cabinet position, adding that reports that President Ian Khama will make a cabinet reshuffle were not true.
“That is just extreme desperation by those who thought the BDP will collapse,” stated Kgathi.He said that from his understanding, those MPs who had left to join the BMD had thought they were joining a party but were now coming back after realising that ‘BMD is not a serious party’.
Meanwhile BMD spokesperson, Sidney Pilane, told this paper that his party was not in position to confirm or deny reports that Masimolole had rejoined the ruling party. He said that as BMD they were only aware of reports that he had joined BDP.
“All the signs in the Makgalemele episode seem to be present in the Masimolole episode,” Pilane stated. We accept that he may well be gone….BMD is a party of the people and it will continue to be a party of the people, for everyone who leaves many more will come.”
Pilane said that the departure of a high profile member does not dent the party’s credibility.
He said that his party will continue to host mass rallies as well as welcome some MPs and councillors from the BDP.
“I can assure you that the remaining MPs will not go anywhere,” said Pilane.
Following Philip Makgalemele and Masimolole’s move to rejoin the BDP, BMD now has six MP.
